Christmas
by Readergirl37
Summary: A collection of Christmas prompts. Elejah. Not a couple in any of these unless mentioned, implied feelings in all chapters.
1. Merry Christmas!

AN: Elijah and Elena are not together yet in any of these fics unless stated. This will be completed as quickly as possible, and I will be updating my other stories as well. Nothing will be taking a backseat to this.

Shout out to Siberia21 because she suggested this and I can't say no to her like ever.

The prompt for this chapter is:"MEERRRY CHRISTMASS _!_ "

* * *

He is expecting Elena, but he's not expecting the plethora of bags and boxes occupying her arms as she greets him with bright eyes and in a heavy coat. A scarf partially obscures her face, as she enthusiastically says, "Merry Christmas!"

He steps aside to let her in. She sets the boxes and bags down gently in his living room. He notices that they're placed exactly where she suggested he put up a tree a few weeks before. She unravels the scarf around her neck and hangs her coat.

"Are those all for me?" He teases, looking at the pile of presents.

"Yeah." Elena says as she continues to take off her outerwear. When her hat and boots are neatly put in their proper place, she looks at him.

He has an eyebrow raised and she laughs.

"I already mailed everyone else's and we're supposed to have bad weather. Those are all yours." She tells him and he disappears for a moment and returns with a few boxes of his own.

They take turns unwrapping presents and drink hot chocolate. It's a quiet Christmas, and it's how they both like it.


	2. The Ugliest Christmas Sweater

AN: Sorry about Caroline's characterization in this one. I feel like Klaus and Caroline together could get really holiday focused and stressed together for some reason.

The prompt for this chapter is: "You look ridiculous."

* * *

If he was human he'd have a headache. He's not expecting the latest argument to come from Caroline, upon Elena's arrival. He's just glad she decided to attend at all, and is planning to attempt to monopolize her time.

"Um, Elena?" Elena's wearing the _ugliest_ ugly Christmas sweater she's ever seen in her life.

"Yeah?" Elena says, taking off her coat. Kol shuts the door and Rebekah knows that tone. She's not in the mood, so she grabs Kol's arm and disappears into another part of the house.

"That sweater looks ridiculous." The blonde says. Elena's eyes widen and she asks her friend what she means.

"It's hideous!" Caroline points out.

"It looks fine, Caroline." Klaus says, trying to defuse what could be easily blown out of proportion.

"I'm not in the mood to argue, Care." Elena says and peels off the sweater. The long sleeved shirt underneath, is thankfully deemed cute and it's less tense after that.

* * *

The holidays stress Caroline out, and Elena doesn't blame her for trying to get some of her stress out. But when Klaus convinces Caroline to follow him for something, Elena mutters to Elijah that she needs a drink. He agrees with her and fixes her problem with ease as they seclude themselves in the library for the next few hours.


	3. Do You Wanna Build a Snowman?

AN:The prompt for this chapter is:" _Dooo you wanna build a snowmaan?_?"

* * *

Elena asks him as they watch the snow fall outside. She sings the question, " _Do you wanna build a snowman?"_

Elijah feels like he's missed something.

"Is that a reference or have you decided to sing instead of speaking?" He inquires and she laughs. She explains quickly, because she's not laughing at him, and she doesn't want to hurt his feelings.

"It's from Frozen. I thought Caroline made you and Kol watch it."

"She did not." He tells her.

She tells him a summary of the movie, and he nods.

"Were you just singing or do you want to actually build a snowman?" He asks and she tells him that she wants to build a snowman.

She's already pulling on her coat and gloves. He hopes she's up for a snowball fight too.


	4. Matching Ugly Christmas Sweaters

AN:The prompt for this chapter is:"Oh, God, look at this ugly ass couples sweater here. Let's buy it."

* * *

She stops as they're walking past a shop, something in the window caught her eye. He stops when she does, and her eyes widen.

"Look at that ugly couples sweater in the window. Let's buy it." She says and opens the door to the shop. He follows her in, unsure if she's serious or not. He might wear it at home, if she buys them, but he will not wear it out in public. She's asking someone who works there about the sweaters. Oh no.

She disappears into the dressing room for less than a minute when she comes out wearing it. She loves it, and asks him to try the other one on. It's in his size, she promises as she holds it out to him. He enters a dressing room, with the ugly sweater in hand.

She waits a minute before asking how it looks. He tells her to enter the dressing room, he's not coming out. She sighs and opens the door to the dressing room.

It's cute, and she asks if he'd wear it around the house, perhaps. Not when they had company, she adds, hoping to convince him.

He gives in, and takes the sweater off so she can buy them. She smiles triumphantly.


	5. Chapter 5

AN: The prompt for this chapter is: Characters are stuck inside a building while being snowed in.

* * *

He knows, as she calls and tells him that she's about to leave her apartment for his house that the weather will make it hard for her to leave. She doesn't have to come over for Christmas, he reminds her. She tells him that her car is already full of presents, and she'll pack a few more things, but she's not leaving him alone for Christmas. She also doesn't want to be snowed in _alone_ on Christmas. She knows how long it'll take to get there, she should be there an hour before the storm really hits.

He can't stop her, he's never been able to, but he tells her to be safe. She promises that she will be. He feels unsettled until her car is in his driveway. He opens the garage door for her, and she pulls in.

* * *

He helps her get everything out of her car, if he didn't know any better he'd say she brought half of her pantry over. She carefully arranges the presents around the tree she set up a few weeks ago. He was in Italy for a few days and she had a copy of his house key.

He turns the heating up a bit, Elena shivers as she takes off her heavy coat.

When she's sitting on his couch with a blanket wrapped around her, they talk. The snow begins outside, thick white flakes whirling around in the air before settling on anything in its path. They eat dinner and watch a movie. Elena tells him she's not tired when he looks at the clock and notices the late hour.

So they sit by the windows, Elijah in his armchair and Elena on the couch with thick socks and a blanket. Elijah makes tea a few chapters later, and she accepts the cup he gives her when he returns from the kitchen, with a smile.

She falls asleep on the couch halfway through her book. Elijah moves a pillow under her head and gives her another blanket, and then continues reading. Snow keeps falling from the sky.

* * *

In the morning, she finds Elijah asleep in his armchair, his book in his lap. She'll gives him a few more hours of sleep before they open presents, but she's going to make a few bad jokes about having a white Christmas first. It definitely will be, with the few feet of snow outside.


	6. Chapter 6

AN:The prompt for this chapter is: Characters are setting up a Christmas tree.

* * *

She asks for his help to set up her tree, despite his warnings that he hadn't put a Christmas tree up in a great while.

That's how he finds himself sitting on Elena's couch putting together a fake tree. Elena's sorting through lights and ornaments as he gets the first few pieces together. He could put it together in less than a minute but Elena's repaying him with brownies. She insisted on it.

So he carefully works on the tree, and then they put up the lights and ornaments. He watches as she puts the star on the top of three, and then the timer goes off for the oven. It's not a bad way to spend the afternoon.


	7. Gift Giving

AN: I am so sorry I haven't been updating like I should, I took the ACT this week and I've been working crazy hours and I've been sleep deprieved and feeling like crap.

After next week I'll be updating everyday, promise.

The prompt for this chapter is: your muse to give mine a present.

* * *

She's sitting next to him on the couch, and Caroline hands him a present. Elena recognizes it. It's the one she got him. If he notices her racing heartbeat, he doesn't say anything about it. He carefully unwraps the paper, and finds a rectangle wrapped in even more paper. It's fragile, and she wanted to make sure it was in as perfect condition as she could find. He carefully gets rid of the next layer of wrapping paper too.

"Elena." He says and she turns her head to actually look at him because she's been looking out of the corner of her eye for a few minutes.

"Thank you." Klaus wonders when the last time he heard his brother sound so touched was.

"What is it?" Someone asks.

"A very hard to find book. It's out of print." Elijah explains, and Elena leans into his space for a moment, carefully opening the book with one hand.

"It's also signed by the author." She tells him, and his eyes widen minutely. If he hadn't known he was in love with her before this, this would be the moment, he thinks as she realizes she's still very close to him. She reddens and moves back to her part of the couch. Caroline hands her a box, and she notices that it's from the Original vampire next to her.

She's not quite as careful as he was, but she takes a deep breath before she unwraps the paper around the object inside the box. She doesn't realize that she held her breath until she lets out a gasp. She opens the book, and sees the autograph. Elijah managed to get her favorite book, signed by her favorite author. She had lost her copy a few weeks before and it had been terrible, it felt like losing a part of herself. Her parents had given her that copy, and Elijah must have heard her cry about it later that night.

Elena carefully moves forward to set the box on the table with the book inside, and hugs him. It's awkward positioning, but Elena doesn't care.

She whispers a thank you, and Elijah knows his siblings and Caroline are staring. He shakes his head slightly. It's a warning for them to not say anything. He's fairly sure they know about his feelings for Elena, but she doesn't. He plans to keep it that way, he's not sure he could take her guaranteed rejection. When he feels her head move from his shoulder, he helps her move back. Kol opens his next present and Elena pretends like her stomach isn't full of butterflies.

* * *

She gets up first, saying that she needs a refill on her hot chocolate. Elijah gets up after she passes him with her mug in hand. He says something similar, although everyone just rolls their eyes. He has a sip or two left in his tea, and it whirls around in the navy colored mug in his hands as he walks. He follows her to the kitchen, and she's stirring and pouring mix in her mug.

"That's the best gift I've ever gotten." She tells him, as she adds marshmallows.

"I'm glad you liked it." He says as he empties his mug and gets a teabag.

"Where did you find mine?" He asks as he begins to make his tea, he had tried to find it several times in various places.

"I looked for a few months, everywhere until I found a little store in France that had it. Longest time I've ever looked for a Christmas present, but you're worth it." She tells him and he kisses her then and there. She kisses him back and he forgets about everything but her until they hear Caroline scream. They break away and he listens for a moment.

"Rebekah got Caroline something she wanted. She's fine." He says and she she just nods.

The timer for his tea to steep beeps, and he moves to work on his tea again. He doesn't know what he should say, or if she wants him to say anything. If she wants to forget the kiss ever happened or not mention it, that's fine. He can do that, if she wants.

"I have something to tell you." She says as she puts the marshmallows away.

"What is it?" He asks before he takes a sip of tea.

"I'm in love with you." She admits.

"That's a relief." He says and kisses her again. Neither of them hear Caroline say that they're going to get skipped if they stay in the kitchen much longer.

Kol assures her that he personally doesn't mind, and to leave the pair in the kitchen alone.

Elijah just kisses her.


	8. The longest chapter I'll write for this

AN: Let's pretend Anna was turned a little later in life.

The prompt for this chapter is: After time and time again of pestering phone calls, your Character A has lied to their parents about having a significant other and now that it's time to go home for the holidays, they are desperate to have someone play the part. Character B begrudgingly agrees to pose as Character A's significant other and attempts to make the best of the situation by spending the time trying to embarrass Character A as much as they can.

* * *

He's agreed, thank god. They made a deal, she didn't think he'd agree to it without one. He already knows the answers to the questions her family will ask. He looks forward to seeing Jeremy again, it'll be interesting to see him with _his_ fiancee. Jeremy won't judge Elena on her fake boyfriend because her little brother is dating a vampire as well. Anna, if he remembers correctly.

* * *

Elena loops her arm in hers and he pretends that he is neutral about it, that he doesn't mind. He almost wants this to be genuine, but Elena's human. She deserves a human date and a human life, if that's what she wants. She reaches forward and presses the doorbell. He can hear the noise made by the humans inside, and Elena exhales slowly. He can see her breath in the air. The door opens to reveal Jeremy.

"Elena's here!" He shouts, to the other humans in the house. Elena and Elijah enter the house, and she shuts the door. When they're taking off their shoes and coats, Jeremy adds,

"And she brought her boyfriend!" Jeremy knows how she feels about Elijah, he's having fun with this, his sister realizes.

Elijah just grins and greets Jeremy, Elena takes her arm out of his in time to get pulled into a hug.

"How are you doing?" A familiar voice asks.

"I haven't seen you in forever. Ric and I are going to have a New Year's Party at our house if you're going to stay here long enough for that. Is this your boyfriend?" Elena can't breathe enough to fully answer her questions, but she does her best as she hugs her aunt back.

"I'm okay. Elijah is my boyfriend and we should be here for that." She says and other people come from the kitchen. Jenna is the first to interrogate Elijah.

"Where did you two meet?" Elena hears Jenna ask.

"Here in Mystic Falls, actually." Elijah begins to tell her aunt their story. She's not going to tell Jenna that they met when she was in high school, ten years ago and that Elijah hasn't aged a day. Her parents are on the Council to try and hunt vampires and Elijah is an Original. She's sure her parents would disown her and Jeremy in a heartbeat if they knew, but they don't know that their children even know about the existence of vampires. Elena gets pulled into a few more hugs and has to introduce her fake boyfriend to everyone.

Elena asks if she's in her old room, and Jeremy just says that she _and_ Elijah will be in her old room, with a wink. She resists the urge to roll her eyes. She and Elijah take their bags up, and she apologizes in a whisper she knows he'll hear.

He laughs quietly. This isn't as horrible as for him as she thinks it is.

* * *

They set their things down in her room, it's been nine years since he's been in this particular space. He pretends to look around and catalogue like so long ago, and he sees her rolling her eyes.

Dinner is good, and Elijah finds it hilarious. Elena does not. Her family asks questions about him, about Elena, about their relationship. He answers them flawlessly, to their story.

* * *

Her family is a nice, but her mother and aunt are a little unobservant for being part of the Council. Elena's father is staring at him a little too hard, so he makes a note to make a human mistake later. Anna knows who he is as soon as she sees him.

It's so interesting, he thinks as he helps clean up. He spent so much time staying away from these people so they didn't know he even existed for Elena's sake, and now Elena's pretending like they're dating. Granted, things had been different then. The family she was trying so hard to keep safe would have tried to kill him had they known. Not that they probably would have succeeded, but that would have probably put a strain on his ally relationship with Elena.

So many high school dances and "sleepovers" were spent dealing with supernatural drama. The sheriff's daughter is a vampire. He wonders how hard the two blondes fought to keep that secret.

* * *

He bumps into Elena, and apologizes for his clumsiness. The lie is minorly irritating, but he catches Anna's eye as he moves. She knows the purpose of it. He's almost sure she's done something human like that to throw the Gilberts off.

Elena doesn't ask him about it until later, after they've said goodnight to the rest of her family. She's still a little surprised he owns almost normal pajamas. He explains, as he moves to sit on her window seat. She lets out a quiet laugh at that, and tells him that she believes in him. He'll be able to win them over. She's pretty sure he can win almost anyone over.

He takes a book out of his suitcase, and settles back on her window seat. He doesn't need to sleep for a few days, and he wants to catch up on his reading.

This feels different than the other times they've acted in front of other people. She almost feels a little bad, but remembers that her family keeps secrets. Jeremy's dating Anna, Elena's adopted, vampires are real and Ric is a vampire hunter who was married to her birth mother. Pretending that she has a boyfriend isn't really that big of a crime when she thinks about it. She was tired of every phone call involving questions about her romantic life, every single time she called either parent. The only person she's interested in is pretending to be her boyfriend, and she's a little screwed. She knows she is, but she pulls up her old comforter anyway, and yawns.

"Goodnight Elijah." She yawns.

"Goodnight Elena." He returns, and then her eyes close.

* * *

There are two entire days of just Christmas, before it's even Christmas. Her parents roast chestnuts, make cookies for Santa, they have a gingerbread house competition, fill stockings, do last minute shopping, prepare for Christmas dinner and hang mistletoe. Elena manages to avoid getting stuck under mistletoe with her fake boyfriend.

The amount of presents under the tree grows with each day and Elena can't wait until it's all over. Elijah's impressed with how much effort her family puts into the holidays.

Christmas day is interesting because Elena has to explain that she and Elijah have their presents for each other at his brother's house. They'd be going there after New Year's Elena's father asks about Elijah's family. Elena butchers their names and changes his mother's name to Sarah, Kols's name is changed to Kevin, and Klaus is changed to Nicholas. Elijah rolls with it easily, and says his brother Nicholas is hosting the celebration this year. His family had odd traditions for the holiday season, he explains.

Elena's father looks less suspicious after that, and Elena unwraps presents from her family. Anna puts a Santa hat on Elena as she hands out presents. Elena smiles and Elijah stares almost a little too long.

"Mistletoe!" Jeremy announces, and Elena and the Original look up.

There's Christmas music playing and her family watching, but she gives him a peck on the lips.

She smiles as she pulls away and Jeremy notes that Elijah looks a little bit less Grinch-like. Not that he'll ever admit that.

* * *

When they're getting things ready in the kitchen, her mother insists that Jeremy and Elijah stay out of the kitchen. Jeremy might accidentally set something on fire, to which he had retorted that it was one time, and that wasn't fair. Elijah can cook, but is a guest. Jeremy promises to entertain Elijah with embarrassing stories and Elena tells him he better not or she'll do the same with Anna in the kitchen. That shuts her brother up nicely and she grins before joining the rest of her family in the kitchen.

Miranda asks her daughter if Elijah's ever less intense, in a quiet voice she thinks Elijah can't hear. She tells her mom that he is, but wonders if that's a lie. He's always some level of intense around her. Jenna jokes that their mistletoe kiss was hardly even a kiss. Elena ignores that and gets a pie out of the oven.

Christmas dinner is good for joking and also for making Elena's family fall asleep. They're all asleep, Elijah tells Elena as they continue to clean up. Except Anna, but she's pretending she is so he left her alone.

She apologizes for the kiss, because she thinks it was unwanted. It wasn't, and he plans on telling her that someday. He likes her and knows she likes him. He just wonders if she knows he's interested in her as well.

She apologizes for the amount of time they have to stay in Mystic Falls, but he tells her that she's spent more time with his family for his sake, so it balances out.

She can't find a flaw in his logic, and they finish cleaning up before she asks if he wants to drive to his old house.

* * *

So many lies, she thinks as Elijah drives. Her parents didn't even know the Mikaelsons threw a ball her senior year. Her parents didn't even know Elijah even _lived_ in Mystic Falls for three years. The hidden estate still takes her breath away.

"It shouldn't be dusty." He tells Elena as he parks in the garage. As the garage door goes down, she realizes it's been a while since no one's known where she was.

"I feel like I'm in high school again." She admits as she gets out of the car. He laughs, a real laugh, and it echoes in the room.

"Remember all of the times I was worried I was going to get caught sneaking out?" She had always worried and he had always known, after they became allies.

"So many times." He says, and she giggles.

The house is in perfect condition, save for a few things his siblings took when they left. She wanders into the library and he comes back from his room victorious.

"I was missing my record of 1921." He shows her an aged book.

"What about the tie?" She points out the tie in his other hand, almost hidden.

"I've been looking for this tie for a few months. I left it here." He explains. She readjusts her position on one of the couches.

"I'm sure Anna will text us when they wake up. Until then, let's just stay here." She proposes and he agrees to that with ease.

They read in the library, and Elijah adjusts the heat for Elena. Almost all of his houses are like this. There's someone taking care of each one, they're always warm and waiting for him to come home. She wonders if Klaus technically owns the house or if Elijah does.

She doesn't mean to, but she falls asleep in the middle of a sentence. Elijah lets her sleep, until Anna texts her. He wakes her up, and they return back to the house.

* * *

Jeremy answers the door and wiggles his eyebrows. There's no evidence of where they went, he left the things he thought he lost in the library. He'll be back for them before they leave to "go to Nicholas's house".

* * *

The few days after Christmas are full of taking down most of the decorations, eating leftovers and writing thank you cards.

Jenna's New Year's Eve Party can't come quickly enough. Elena has to give in to the urge to reach for Elijah's hand to keep up the appearance that they're a couple. His hand is warm in hers.

Elena's mother passes out tea, and Elena thinks it's fine. Elijah coughs slightly, and she realizes why the smell of the tea is familiar.

"Jeremy, don't spike Elijah and Anna's drinks." Elena scolds before she takes a sip too. Jeremy confesses to putting whiskey in their cups. Elena coughs slightly too and he confesses to putting it in Elena's as well. She's proud of how well she and Jeremy can still read each other. If Elena coughed at the tea, it wasn't likely that it was the vervain, is what their parents will think.

Elena's mother apologizes and tells Jeremy he's not allowed to prepare food in their house again. Elena's pretty sure that was his goal, and her mother apologizes and takes their cups. Elena coughs into her elbow and her other hand is on Elijah's back. Jeremy apologizes to Anna and rubs her back in apology.

"You're lucky you're cute, Jeremy." Anna says between coughs.

Jeremy explains Anna's aversion to alcohol, it had killed her mother a few years before. He says it for Elijah's benefit, so he could be in on the lie Jeremy told everyone else. Elijah nods and tells Anna that he's sorry for her loss.

Elena and Elijah both notice the tears in her eyes as she coughs again, but don't say anything. They're not sure if it's the vervain or the mention of her mother.

Elena almost forgets her hand is on Elijah's back. Jenna gives out pie when they all stop coughing. She claims that Ric had made it and she didn't want the temptation in the house. Ric just grins and Jenna kisses him. Jeremy and Jenna pretend to be a little grossed out, to Elijah and Anna's amusement.

They eat pie and watch Christmas movies, and when Jenna and Alaric leave, she reminds them all that they need to come to the party the next day. Elena reminds them all that she and Elijah are leaving after the party, and Elijah wonders how desperate she is to get away from them.

* * *

Elena is about to look for Elijah when she hears her father talking to him in the hall.

She hears him tell Elijah that he was a little worried at first, but he can see that Elijah loves her. Elijah confirms it, and she can almost always tell the difference when Elijah's lying and when he's not. He's not lying, at least to her knowledge.

She freezes for a moment, and saying goodnight is a little harder. Elijah can tell something is wrong, but he just sits and reads on her window seat. She wishes him a good night, and he wishes her sweet dreams.

* * *

She packs almost everything she can in the morning, so they can leave after they've had enough of the party.

She leaves out what she needs for the night, and Elijah does the same. Elena ends up getting ready a little early, but has to text Elijah from the bathroom. Her zipper is stuck and she needs help. She's already tried to find the problem, but she almost ripped her dress doing that. Anna and Jeremy are getting food from the Grill with her mom and she doesn't want to bother her dad.

She feels a hand on her back in under a minute, and Elijah does something to the zipper and then it slides up smoothly. Elena thanks him, blushing. She tells him that after they eat something, she'll put on her makeup and heels. Until then, just getting in the dress was a victory. He grins and she can't help but grin back. She wonders if he really does love her, but then she hears Jeremy and Anna downstairs. She thanks him and he tells her that it wasn't a problem. They join her family downstairs.

* * *

She wants to leave already, but Jenna made her promise to stay until midnight passed. She promised Elijah they'd go back to his old home to get whatever he wanted and then drive back home. It's so close she can almost taste it, and she and Elijah stand by the stairs. Jenna's home is lovely, but Elena can tell that Alaric did not have much say in decorating it. It screams Jenna, down to the throw pillows.

When people begin to chant down the numbers until midnight, someone shouts that Elena has mistletoe over her head. Elijah's closest to her, although more than one person is willing to kiss her for him.

Elena leans in and so does he, and they have their first kiss to the sound of cheering. It's a real kiss, not a peck at all. Elijah loves her too, she realizes. She kisses him longer than what is probably socially acceptable, but she can't find it in herself to care too much.

"I love you." She confesses when they break apart.

"I love you too." He says and she gives a relieved smile. He kisses her again.

* * *

It's a few more minutes before they leave the party to get books and ties.


	9. Ice Storm

AN:The prompt for this chapter is: It's the first "snowfall" of the season and what was supposed to just be a light flurry turned into an ice storm and now my muse is stuck at your muse's house with no electricity.

* * *

"It's just supposed to snow an inch, right?" Elena asks as he makes tea.

"According to several meteorologists, yes." He tells her, but reminds her that they could be wrong.

Elena looks out the window again.

"That looks like more than an inch." She says, and he glances out the window.

"What if we're snowed in?" Elena asks. The vampire next to her takes a sip of his tea.

"Always a possibility." He says, and she looks at him. She sits on the couch and turns on the TV. Elijah finds the weather channel and Elena swears.

"An ice storm? Really?" The lights flicker for a few moments, and then the lights go out.

Elena swears again. Elijah works on getting a fire going in her fireplace, before Elena does anything else.

Elena tells him she'll get candles. He tells her that he doesn't need them and she tells him to shush.

It's like a bad romance movie, she thinks. She's sitting by the fire to stay warm, and reading. There are way too many candles burning to probably be safe, but Elijah hasn't said anything about it so she doesn't care.

He hands her another blanket that she can wrap around herself, and she feels a little ridiculous. She shouldn't need to wear two pairs of socks and 2 shirts and a sweater in her own house. She adjusts the blankets around her, and is a little jealous that Elijah doesn't have to put in any effort to be warm. She reaches for a book to read.

She's a few chapters in before she falls asleep. Elijah's reading too, she's safe to do so.

* * *

When she wakes up, there's bright light and for a moment she's worried that she died, but then she sees Elijah and blinks again. The lights are back on in her apartment.

"The good news, the electricity's back. The bad news is that we're snowed in for a few more hours."

Elena groans, and he laughs. She makes him move over, it's her couch after all, she deserves to sit on it. He shows her movies that he had intended to show her before the electricity went out.

She can't think of anything else better to do, so he starts a movie and they begin to watch it.

* * *

They're still watching movies when the storm manages to blow over.

Even though it wasn't what she planned or wanted, she wouldn't trade the memory for anything, she knows as she and Elijah laugh too hard at a bad joke. Elijah does a pretty good imitation of one of the characters and she's pretty sure she's going to crack a rib. He just laughs.


	10. Terrible Weather

AN:The prompt for this chapter is: It's the middle of the night and my muse hears a knock at their door, it's your muse and they are dripping wet and shivering out in the cold. My muse invites them in to warm up.

* * *

He's working on a legal document when it begins to rain or possibly sleet. He doesn't bother looking out the window, and he really doesn't think much about the weather at all until he hears a knock at his door.

It's Elena, he discovers, standing out in the terrible weather. She's soaking wet, and starting to shiver.

He doesn't say anything, he just disappears for less than a second and returns with towels. There's a particularly thick towel on his floor, for her to stand on and take her shoes off. He closes the door and hands her a few towels to work on getting herself properly dry.

She tells him that she hadn't expected for it to be so miserable out on her walk over.

He tells her he'll return in a moment, and that the weather has always been some level of unpredictable.

He returns with a sweater and sweatpants that look to be almost her size, but they're still big on her. She's busy trying to dry her hair when she notices.

"Rebekah left the pants here last week and told me she didn't want them back. The sweater was mine, but it was shrunk by Klaus." He explains. She wonders why he has them, but she thanks him instead of asking. He tells her he'll make some tea, and she thanks him. He walks to the kitchen. Elena knows that he's there if she needs something and he's giving her space.

When she has drier hair and dry clothes, she walks to his laundry room, rarely used. She puts her clothes in the dryer and starts it, and makes her way to the kitchen.

He hands her a mug of tea, and she smiles at him and takes a drink. It feels like fire down her throat for a moment, and she can feel it when it hits her stomach. The tea is warmer than she is at the moment.

"Why did you walk to my house at one o'clock in the morning?" He asks curiously. She groans.

"It's one?" She asks. He nods.

"Kol must have messed with my clocks again. I need to change my locks." He lets out a laugh at that and she halfheartedly scowls at him.

"Why are you up?" She asks.

"Working on some paperwork." He tells her before taking a sip of his own tea. She notes his rolled up sleeves and missing tie.

"When was the last time you slept?" She asks. She always asks, she's always curious. He has to think for a moment so she takes another gulp of hot tea.

"A few days ago." He says.

"Huh. I feel like I sleep my life away. You get so much done." She sighs.

"The perks of being a vampire, I suppose." He says, looking with interest as she looks at his phone. The screen lights up.

"Oh my god." She groans, and the screen goes dark a few seconds later.

"What?" He knows it's not the background, and she doesn't know his passcode.

"It's Christmas." She says and she's expecting a reaction out of him other than his calm,

"Oh. Is that all?" He takes a sip of tea and she rolls her eyes.

"Just because you're almost as old as Christmas doesn't mean it's not important." She says.

"Very funny." He says dryly.

"I assume you had a reason for visiting me in this awful weather?" He asks.

"I do." She confirms.

"I need you to go with me to Rebekah's Christmas party tomorrow so she can stop trying to pair me with Kol. No offense, but your brother is one of the last people I'd want to date." She says, and wonders if he knows she likes him.

"I can do that." He says. He doesn't want her to be uncomfortable, after all. He wonders if Kol is interested in her, and if that was why Rebekah and Kol were pushing at it. He thought he had made his feelings for Elena perfectly clear to his siblings, but apparently Kol and Rebekah had forgotten.

"Great." She smiles, and he wonders when he became wrapped around her finger.

"Mind if I stay until the storm's over?" She asks.

"Not at all." He tells her.


	11. High Five

AN:The prompt for this chapter is: My muse is supposed to cook a holiday feast for their family that's coming to visit from out of town, but has no idea how to cook the traditional holiday food and has enlisted your muse to help.

* * *

"You're a lifesaver." Elena tells him as he moves too quickly for us to see.

"Literally." He says and she laughs as he asks her to pass ingredients.

"I can barely do any of these recipes, they're so picky. But Jeremy asked me to cook them, thank you so much." She says. He's made her in charge of desserts. He can do everything else.

* * *

She looks at the clock.

"They'll be here in an hour." Elena reminds him and he nods.

They wrap up the last minute touches and everything is done three minutes before Anna rings the doorbell.

Elena gives Elijah a high five, despite his minor confusion about it.


	12. SNOWBALL FIGHTS

AN:The prompt for this chapter is: SNOWBALL FIGHTS

* * *

She ran out of the door before he could stop her, but he's comforted by the fact she was decked out in winter wear. One of her neighbors is blasting Christmas music so loudly he almost can't focus on her heartbeat.

He can't find her in the feet of snow, and then something cold hits his face. He wipes it off, giving his hand a single executed shake to get the slush off.

He's hit with another one.

"Elena if you think you can beat me, you can't." He announces, just loudly enough for her to hear, her neighbors won't hear. He drew her name out.

She throws another at his neck.

He grimaces for a second, and carefully shapes a snowball. He throws it, not too hard. He hears Elena squeal, and she's finally revealed. The snow hit where her coat doesn't cover. She tries to shake the snow out and he throws a few more snowballs.

"That's not fair!" He hears her say.

"I never said I was." He retorts and she makes an annoyed noise.

She throws a few more and he easily sidesteps them.

* * *

This continues on, back and forth for ten more minutes before his phone rings. He's about to check on it, when he hears Elena try to sneak up behind him.

She jumps and gets snow in his hair. He turns and catches her before her feet return to the ground. Her eyes widen when she figures out what he's about to do.

"Elijah no!" She shrieks, but it's too late. He holds her close and his back hits the snow. Thick flakes fly up and cover both of them, and she's covered in snow on top of him. He lets go, and she moves back a little and she thinks maybe he's finally going to kiss her, he looks like he's about to. Then something cold touches her face and she knows it's not his lips.

She wipes the snow out of her eyes and pushes snow into his face before she rolls to her side and off him.

They pelt each other with snow until he can tell she's cold.

Despite her protests, she's starting to shiver. He picks her up with ease and takes her inside to warm up, but only after he declares that he won. She tells him she wants a rematch, even as her teeth begin to chatter. He just laughs.


	13. Mistletoe

AN:Song for this chapter: My Type. For the record, I have no idea why this came out like this and dang I didn't mean for it to be this much, but here it is.

The prompt for this chapter is: person a moving person b into taking a few steps back/backing them against the wall ("oh look, how did that mistletoe get right there?")

* * *

He's been very careful lately to avoid any kind of contact with her. She's sure she can fix that. Every step she takes, he takes one backwards. Perfect, she thinks. She's not human anymore, not fragile glass anymore.

It's time he realized that. She already has, and that's why he finds his back against a literal wall. She takes the last step, closes the gap between them.

"Oh look." She says, her voice innocent.

"Mistletoe." She says in the same voice, and she can see it, she knows he wants to kiss her too. It'll be another few years before he even closes the few inches separating them, so she presses her lips to his and moves her hands to his hair. He kisses her back hesitantly and she wants more.

So he gives it to her because really, he's learned by this point he can barely deny her anything and really he'd be foolish to deny her access to his lips. He takes control of the kiss, she notices one of his arms around her back getting her even closer, and she's pretty sure she's died again. She wouldn't be entirely surprised, his brother had already killed her once before, and then his sister, but his kiss makes her forget everything other than how to kiss back. She's pretty sure she wouldn't even mind dying again, this is so worth it. All of those months of tension have come to this.

When she feels movement, he's moving them and his lips are still on hers, the little part of her brain that's not fallen under his spell just yet is impressed with his skill. When his lips leave hers to travel to her neck, she says,

"We're not under mistletoe anymore." She almost doesn't recognize her voice, although she feels it coming out of her throat.

"I know." He says and then her brain forgets everything but him for a while.


	14. Hospital

AN:The prompt for this chapter is: "you're in the hospital for the holidays so i came in while you were sleeping to decorate your room i love you merry christmas"

* * *

He's lucky, not for the first time, that Elena is a rather heavy sleeper. He can't wait to see her reaction to the decorations. She had cried because she was going to miss Christmas. He had promised before she fell asleep that he wouldn't let that happen.

She's confused on where she is for a moment, and then she sees Elijah.

* * *

"Merry Christmas." He says. He's even wearing a Santa hat with his suit. She laughs and then winces in pain. It hurts to breathe, but it's like being stabbed when she laughs. She can feel her injured ribs protest as she tries to catch her breath.

"Right. No laughing." He says solemnly and takes off the hat.

"A holiday without laughing. How happy." She says dryly.

"It's still a happy Christmas." He reminds her. He hands her a box that she carefully opens. There's just a piece of paper and a little red bottle of red gatorade. It's darker than the usual kind and she understands what he's offering when she sees it. The paper is a release form.

If she drinks his blood, it'll be an even better holiday. He can fake and compel her out of the hospital.

She twists the cap and tilts the bottle to her lips. It takes a few hours to get out of the hospital, but when she can breathe without pain, she crushes herself against him and thanks him in a whisper only he can hear.

He apologizes that she got injured, he could have stopped it, but not without revealing his nature. A few people had called 911 and she had to get loaded into an ambulance. At least he kept it out of the news, and done damage control.

* * *

He leaves the decorations, he's not overly attached to them and Elena says they could make someone else's day better anyway. She's right.

When they finally get out of the hospital and to her house, they have an actual Christmas with Christmas movies, eggnog and presents. It's the best Christmas she's had in a long time, even with the painful Christmas morning.


	15. The Great Marshmallow Debate

AN:The prompt for this chapter is:

"YOU DON'T LIKE MARSHMALLOWS IN YOUR HOT CHOCOLATE? WHY DO YOU HATE LOVE"

* * *

She can't believe it.

"You don't like marshmallows in your hot chocolate? Why do you hate love?" She demands to know, it's half a joke and half serious. She wonders how he can just sip at his plain hot chocolate.

"I don't hate love because of my dislike of marshmallows, Elena." He says. She shakes her head.

"I'm pretty sure you hate love and this is why I haven't seen you have a girlfriend ever." She says. He doesn't bring up his romantic history to prove her theory wrong, just takes a deep breath.

"I do not hate love. I am just preoccupied with other things." He says and she dismisses his excuse.

"Pretty sure you just hate love." She says and sips her marshmallow filled hot chocolate.

"I am in love right now, your accusations are ridiculous, Elena." He says and his eyes widen fractionally. Shit, he hadn't meant to say that.

* * *

Her eyes are bigger than he's ever seen them.

"Who are you in love with? I'll tell this person you don't like marshmallows and they'll agree with me, I'm sure." She says.

He tells her to set her drink down as he sets his down on her kitchen counter. It's probably because she'll be surprised by who it is, she thinks. She wants Elijah to be happy, and her more than a crush thing will fade someday. She thinks he'll pull out his phone or say it, but he's looking at her with those intense eyes and then those lips are on hers.

She tastes like the marshmallows she adores so much and he can't get enough of her. She kisses him back and wonders if it's a dream, but she can feel her kitchen counter digging into her back for a few more moments so she knows it isn't.

When he pulls away, she forgot to breathe, she takes a few breaths and looks at him.

They kiss again. Later, they'll settle the marshmallow debate. Until then, they have better things to do.


	16. Way Too Long

AN: This is AH and this really ran away from me this was supposed to be 800 words max. The prompt for this chapter is: FRIENDS AU - "our christmas party turned into a tropical theme because the radiator is broken and it's hotter than hell in here - damn you look good without a shirt i never noticed before asgdhfjgkhl"

* * *

It's hot. Elena's pretty sure she and Caroline are starting to stick together. Worst office party ever. No one wants to move and it's the middle of the day because their boss had the great idea of making the Christmas party mandatory. The old man is sitting in a chair with rapidly melting ice on his head and his eye closed.

Elena thinks she's dehydrated. All because someone wanted to mess with the heating system and it got stuck on Way Too High. Elijah Mikaelson walks into the room. Caroline's too tired to even act excited, or say anything. Elena knows Caroline has been trying to shove her to Elijah, but has just rolled her eyes at Caroline's attempts.

"The repairman should be here in an hour at the earliest." He says and Elena thinks she sees sweat on his forehead. She's a little luckier, the dress she's wearing shows off her legs and arms. Elijah Mikaelson always always always wears suits, Caroline had told her ages ago. Elena's pretty sure her best friend is right, she's never seen him in anything else.

"Let's turn the party into a tropical theme." Their boss's secretary suggests, moving a few things around. She gets rid of the holiday decorations and replaces it with their summer party decorations with some effort. Elena wonders how she has energy. There's a fake coconut near Caroline's head and mistletoe near Elena's. She wants to laugh.

* * *

A few people agree with the suggestion, just because it means taking off a layer or two. Sweaters are shed, and Elena helps Caroline peel off her ice blue sweater before the blonde can muster the energy to ask for help.

Elijah takes a seat next to Elena, one of the only open seats in the room.

"Welcome to the Level Seven office party, Elijah." Elena says halfheartedly. He gives a half laugh. He shrugs off his suit jacket, and rolls up his sleeves. Well defined forearms come into Elena's line of view.

"I feel bad for you." Comes out of Elena's mouth before she can properly explain. Elijah Mikaelson raises an eyebrow. He doesn't think he's ever heard that from well, anyone before.

"I mean, you're wearing a full suit. You have to be burning up." She says and he nods.

* * *

Elena Gilbert is an interesting person. She doesn't seem to care that he's about three levels above her boss and drives a Bugatti or that he owns more stock in the company he works at for fun than anyone else.

Elena Gilbert is gorgeous with dark hair and dark eyes but somehow single, brilliant, and big hearted. He remembers a few months before, she had once made every single person in the building cookies, over the span of a few weeks. She went by level, and he had been surprised to hear her knock on his office door with homemade cookies in a blue dress with a shy smile.

Those cookies were amazing too, he had almost wondered if he could pay her to get more. She sits next to him like she's not one of the most interesting people he's seen in his life of being at the top of the corporate ladder.

* * *

"Nik says you wear suits too much." Caroline offers, interrupting his thoughts. He laughs.

"If Niklaus had it his way, everyone would wear jeans and henleys." He retorts and Caroline laughs.

"So other than being stuck in this now tropical office party, how are the two of you faring?" He asks after minute and Caroline lets Elena answer first.

"Pretty good. My brother and his fiance are flying in tonight so I'll have a nice Christmas with them in a few days." She says and he wonders about the rest of her family. He only saw pictures of her brother and his fiancee with Caroline at her desk. She doesn't have pictures of any other loved ones.

"Nik and I will have a quiet morning before going over to Elena's. What about you, Elijah?" Caroline asks the question Elena wanted to ask.

"I don't have plans." He admits. He planned on working and having a quiet day.

"You can come over to Elena's." Caroline invites him before Elena can think.

"I couldn't impose on Elena like that." He says. Elena opens her mouth before she can stop herself.

"You might as well come spend it with family. Besides, if you like my chocolate chip cookies, you're going to love my apple pie." She says and he bends to the want of another for the first time in a very long time.

"Very well." He says, as Elena puts her hair into a ponytail. Someone opens the door, letting even hotter air rush into the room.

"Your unit should be fixed in about half an hour."

"Thank you." Elijah says, speaking for the room. He has the most energy, he's been in there for the shortest span of time.

* * *

Elena pulls him into a conversation after Caroline tells them she's going to take a nap. Caroline can actually stand to sleep in this heat, to his amazement.

He asks if he could possibly have her chocolate chip recipe. She smiles and shakes her head.

"I don't share recipes. You can have anything but my recipes." She says.

"What about more cookies?" He asks.

"Elijah Mikaelson, it seems like you want to make a deal with me." She says and a smirk appears on his lips.

"Maybe I do."

If Caroline wasn't so tired and if they weren't stuck in the breakroom, she'd tell them to just make out already.

He asks if he can bring anything to her Christmas dinner and she has to think.

"Rolls." She says.

"Dinner rolls?" He asks.

"As long as they're bread rolls, you can bring whatever you want." She tells him. He makes a note of it on his phone, and she gives him her address.

The door opens again and the air outside is colder than it is in the break room.

"The heating system has been fixed." The person who had been in earlier announces. Half hearted cheers come from everyone in the room.

Elena gets out of her chair and her boss tells everyone to just go home, he's sorry it was such a mess. Elena wonders why he didn't let them leave earlier, but doesn't say anything. She gently wakes Caroline up as everyone leaves the room with the last of their energy.

Elijah tells them both goodbye, and that he'll see them in three days for Christmas.

Elena can't help but be a little excited. Caroline notices and is about to point it out but Elena tells her not to. It's a cold outside and they both almost wish it was a little warmer.

* * *

Jeremy and Bonnie are happy to see her and Caroline, and thoughts of Elijah Mikaelson are left alone for a few days.

Elena slips noise cancelling ear muffs on Jeremy and Bonnie as they sleep, when she gets up early in the morning.

She prepared what she could the night before, but she has a lot of cooking to do before Caroline, Klaus, and Elijah arrive at noon. She makes pancakes from the recipe her mother used when she and Jeremy were kids. It's a tradition she's better at than Jeremy. Only because Jeremy focuses on other things and then the pancakes almost burn. She sets the mix aside and moves on to preparing the other food. She plays her cooking playlist, she can't cook to anything else, and she's glad once again she invested in the ear muffs she puts on Jeremy and Bonnie each holiday season.

Her family had so many traditions when she and Jeremy were kids that her mother had written them. She and Jeremy can't pull them all off anymore, and they make their own traditions now. Some of them were ridiculous anyway, and Elena reminds herself that it's okay as she prepares the dressing, dividing it in two separate bowls. One bowl will become stuffing, and the other will go in the oven.

It feels like barely any time at all until Jeremy and Bonnie come out of her guest room, yawning, earmuffs around their necks.

Jeremy complains about the volume of her music like he always does, and she puts a pancake in the skillet before she does. Jeremy rolls his eyes and she gives her guests pancakes first, and then gets hers. She eats hers almost absentmindedly, her mind is going much faster than she can swallow pancake bites

Jeremy makes the satisfied noise he's always made when he takes his first bite.

"I wait all year for these." He tells his sister and she already knows, so she just nods. Bonnie is too busy chewing to speak. Elena's an amazing cook. If she wasn't so in love with her career, they could easily see her be a head chef somewhere or a personal chef to some celebrity.

She serves pancakes in between working on other dishes, and has her music is a turned up to be just a little bit louder, half the volume it was before her guests were up. Once there's no more pancake mix and she has a few left, Jeremy and Bonnie get ready for the rest of the day while she puts them away. Caroline and Klaus will want a few of her pancakes later.

* * *

Once they're out of her apartment for a few hours for touristing, she turns the music back up and slips into the rhythm of cooking. She has a little more extra time without having to work on rolls or cranberry sauce. It's nice. Caroline is a fairly good cook and offered to bring the latter. Caroline's mother had the recipe when she was a kid and passed it on to Caroline. If Caroline doesn't have children she wants to pass the recipe on to, Elena wants it.

She has an extra few minutes to focus on herself. She puts on Christmas proof lipstick and the apron that's so big that it almost completely covers her dress. Jeremy and Bonnie return a few minutes before noon, for their job as door openers. She'll be busy in the kitchen.

The table is set, it's all perfect. The last thing to be done is her apple pie, and she pulls it out a few seconds before her doorbell rings. She turns off her oven, and the heat in her apartment balances out to a nice warm temperature that leans a little more towards warm than cool. She's not sure she can deal with an abundance of heat until summer comes again. It'll be too soon if anything even close to as warm as that office party happens again before the seasons change.

"I come baring cranberry sauce!" Caroline announces as she's the first to arrive in the apartment.

"I brought rolls, like I promised." She hears Elijah say, and she can see the look on Klaus's face as the trio comes into view.

"What'd you bring, Klaus?" Elena asks. He panics for a moment before he regains his composure.

"I brought Elijah." He says and laughter erupts in the room.

"I have to admit Elena, I don't know many people who can make this world famous artist act human like that." Elijah says and she grins. She takes the food from Elijah and Caroline, Elijah also brought a good bottle of wine. He has gained serious brownie points in Elena's view, as she checks the label. She hangs up the apron and Elijah forgets to breathe for a moment. He had almost forgotten how stunning Elena was.

* * *

She tells them all to sit where their place cards are, and he's sitting next to his brother and across from Elena.

They're all looking at them, Elijah realizes, as he and Klaus are about to take their first bites of food.

"What?" Klaus asks.

"Your reaction is worth watching." Jeremy says and Elijah takes a bite first. He almost moans. Klaus actually does, a little bit.

"Can I hire you as our chef?" Klaus asks between bites. Elena shakes her head, smile on her face.

"I like my job too much to quit."

"Are you sure?" Elijah asks after a forkful of mashed potatoes. He's pretty sure Elena could cook literal garbage and he'd be inclined to eat it.

She laughs at that and Elijah wants to hear it again. It's a very beautiful sound. He can't tell which is better, her stuffing or her laugh. They're both amazing really, he thinks.

Elena compliments Elijah on his choice in rolls. She doesn't ask if he bought them or not, and he's thankful.

* * *

No one protests when Elena reminds them that dessert isn't for a while. Elijah can't remember the last time he ate so much.

"You're dangerous. I'll have to work this off later tonight." Elijah tells her and Elena flashes a triumphant grin.

"I think I'll break the button on these pants if I eat another bite." Klaus groans and Caroline laughs.

"I told you to wear forgiving pants today but you wanted to wear those new pants instead." Caroline reminds him as she adjusts her yoga pants.

"I wore my eating pants today because unlike a third of you, I came prepared. I wait all year for this." Jeremy announces and almost everyone laughs.

"Don't laugh, it's not funny, he's not joking. " Bonnie says and Klaus and Elijah laugh harder.

The wait for dessert isn't for anticipation but rather to give their stomachs time to digest Elena's food and make room. Jeremy waits longer than the rest of them.

"What's for dessert?" Elijah asks. Klaus groans at the thought. Jeremy eats another piece of turkey as Elena gets up.

"Pumpkin pie, apple pie, peppermint bark and my Christmas cookies. We have wine from Elijah, eggnog and hot chocolate." As people speak, she figures out what order she'll bring dessert out in as Klaus and Caroline return a few of the larger dishes to the kitchen to make room. She trusts Klaus with the mountain of cookies piled on the large lipped plate, she trusts Caroline with the antique metal pie pan holding her pumpkin pie, but she trusts only herself to carry the apple pie she baked in her mother's glass pie pan.

She carries the wine, Caroline knows where Elena keeps the eggnog so she gets that and Elena points to the hot chocolate ingredients on the counter as she walks out of the kitchen. Klaus is a little relieved this is a lower stress job than the cookies.

Elijah almost asks her to marry him after his first bite of apple pie. He bites his tongue instead, until the irrational want fades. He does want to date her though, and she tells him the wine he picked pairs pretty well with all of the desserts, the apple pie especially. He's inclined to agree.

* * *

Bonnie and Klaus manage to carry Jeremy to the guest bedroom after he drifts off at the table, like he always does.

"He ate quite a bit, I'm not surprised he's asleep." Klaus says. Elena nods.

"You should have seen him when we were kids. When he was in first grade, he almost fell asleep with his head in the mashed potatoes. My dad moved them just in time." Elena says and there's more laughter from the table.

Caroline and Klaus leave first, after Elena presents them with pancakes and leftovers. Caroline treats them like they're gold.

Bonnie falls asleep on her couch a few minutes after Elijah suggests that he should probably leave, but Elena cuts him another slice of pie. There's something about her that he can't say no to.

* * *

So he eats another slice of pie and drinks another glass of wine, she offered eggnog or hot chocolate and he had simply shaken his head. She packs up leftovers for him, despite his protests.

They keep talking, and when her fingers brush his to give him the paper bag full of plastic containers full of home cooked goodness, the question slips out.

"Do you want to go on a date sometime?"

"Sure. I'd like that." She says and it seems so backwards in his mind, he already had Christmas dinner with who she considers family and they're going on a date after that, but she gives him her phone number anyway.

It's two days before Bonnie and Jeremy leave and she doesn't see them that often, so she tells him that the date can happen after that.

He nods, and leaves her apartment.

* * *

The next time he sees her is at one of his favorite restaurants. It's almost as good as her cooking, which is why he picks it.

Conversation comes easily to them, when he switches topics she adjusts easily. He's surprised how diverse her interests are and the check arrives before they're aware of it. "That was nice." Elena says and he agrees.

There's a few more dates before he kisses her, and while she's not spreading the fact that she has a standing Saturday night date with Elijah Mikaelson, there's nothing wrong with them dating. It doesn't affect her at work and they're never unprofessional anyway.

* * *

After their first kiss, she asks if he's dating her just for her culinary skills. He denies it so genuinely that she decides to just see where it goes, and to stop worrying about it.


	17. Relief

AN:The prompt for this chapter is: "there's a storm and omg i'm losing signal are you okay? hold on let me drive 489432 miles to get you the night before christmas"

* * *

"I didn't expect that plot twist and I was wondering-" Elena trails off. He waits a few seconds.

"Elena?" The call ended. Maybe she hang up by accident. It's not the first time that's happened, technology can be fickle.

He calls her back. No response. He waits a few more minutes before panic begins to rise.

After thirty minutes, he packs a bag in seconds and drives.

* * *

He calls every so often, but after a certain point he knows she's not responding for a reason. He just hopes she's alive. There's always been the possibility of someone hurting her to get to him. It's happened before, with others. He won't let that happen to Elena.

He compels several policemen on his way to Elena. It doesn't matter that she's over a thousand miles away at the moment, he needs to be there as quickly as possible.

* * *

Once he's in town, he barely wastes a minute by parking, and moves.

He opens her door with the key she always keeps under her mat. He doesn't smell spilled blood, he hears her human heartbeat.

Thank god.

She's asleep on her couch with her phone in hand, close to her face.

He can't help but wake her.

"Elijah?" She asks sleepily, blinking.

He hugs her before she's actually aware of what's going on.

"I thought you were thirteen hours away." She says hesitantly.

"I was. But your call dropped and I grew concerned when you didn't respond to my calls." He says. He's not willing to let her go just yet and she just wraps her arms around him.

"Wanna spend Christmas with me?" She asks sleepily.

"I would like nothing more." He says truthfully. Relief has hit his system. She can't remember the last time he was so relaxed in a hug.

"Are you okay?" She asks after a minute. Usually she's the one hugging him this long, he almost never initiates this kind of physical contact with her.

"The possibility that you were dead consumed my thoughts more than it should have, since you are perfectly fine." He says and he begins to pull away. If he really needs it, she'll reassure him. She adjusts her arms around him and puts her head on his shoulder. He's so relieved that it scares her a little.

"Are you okay? Where's your car?" She asks and he tells her he'll move it to her driveway in a few minutes.

"When I thought there was a possibility of losing you I acted on instinct." He says. Elijah's always been one to tell her to rely on the facts and knowledge and then feelings.

A puzzle piece snaps into place and she lets out a little gasp when she figures it out.

"You love me. You're in love with me." She babbles. She waits for him to deny it, but instead he just watches her. He doesn't know how to react, so he just stays still, listening to Elena continue to speak.

"Oh my god you love me back. This isn't one sided you love me too I-" Her words get cut off, but this time Elijah knows why. It's one of the best Christmases either of them have had in years.


	18. Boxes

AN: The prompt for this chapter is: "I did that annoying thing where I put loads of smaller boxes inside one big box and you're getting really mad but you don't know that the ring is in the smallest box and I can't wait to see your face"

* * *

She hates boxes in other boxes, she's already told him. Almost nothing good ever comes from three different boxes for a present.

* * *

She's frustrated after the first box. He can't help the smirk. Elena throws lid after lid after lid to him.

One dozen boxes. The remaining one is smaller than her hand, and just when she's about to open it, he takes it. He holds it in his hand and she takes off the lid. There's a little velvet box inside. It takes a moment to connect, and he discards the box around it, and gets on one knee.

"Oh my god." She says, and he looks so vulnerable and excited for the moment that it almost physically hurts and she stops breathing when he starts speaking. She feels his hand reach for hers and she lets him do whatever he wants and her mind is blank.

"Elena Gilbert, will you marry me?" He asks and words escape her lips.

She has to think for a second, how to form the right word, his thumb is moving in circles against her hand and she finds it.

"Yes. Oh my god, yes. A million times over, yes." She says and her smile is so big it hurts. The smile on his face is one of the most beautiful things she's ever seen and she sees him exhale his anxiety.

He slides the ring on her finger and she's worried about the fact she's almost shaking, but she kisses him instead of worrying.

* * *

Not all things in too many boxes, she thinks later. Just quite a few.


	19. Cookies, Not Salad

AN:The prompt for this chapter is: "We're out of cookies, but do you think Santa will settle for a salad?"

* * *

What kills her is that he asks it with a straight face, like he doesn't know better than she does.

"We're out of cookies, but do you think Santa will settle for a salad?"

She bursts out laughing. He almost cracks a grin but keeps it together.

"We're going to add to Santa Claus's unhealthy cookie problem, like every other house." She tells him and that's how he ends up making cookies at almost eleven o'clock at night.

* * *

"They just need to bake for a few more minutes and then we'll leave this for Santa." She tells him and he nods.

She disappears to their bedroom to sleep and he eats a few cookies and wonders if his darling wife knows that Santa Claus isn't real or not.


	20. Punny

CHAPTER TWENTY AN:The prompt for this chapter is:

Are you Christmas, because I want to Merry you.

* * *

He hates their lives. Just a little bit. Christmas Eve, the most perfect time to propose to the love of his life and the entire town is under a spell to speak in bad puns and humor. He's still going to try, though.

"Elena." He says and gets on one knee. A look of confusion and then understanding flash across her face.

"Are you Christmas, because I want to merry you." Slips out of his mouth. She just nods, tears in her eyes.

"Elijah. Wanna hear a knock knock joke?" She asks as he puts the ring on her finger. He nods.

"Knock, knock." She says.

"Who's there?"

"Olive!"

"Olive who?

"Olive you." She says.

"Olive you too." He says. It's not what he expected, it's not planned or precise and they'll need to deal with that spell sooner than later, but it's still their own kind of perfect and that makes it worth more than anything.

* * *

FINIS


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